Arkansas Gov. Sarah Huckabee Sanders bragged about her humility at a campaign rally Sept. 18, taking a dig at Democratic presidential nominee Kamala Harris for being a stepmother and not a biological mother.
In a campaign already scorched with “family values” conflict over abortion and IVF, the daughter of a former Southern Baptist pastor turned politician upped the ante so much that an official with Donald Trump’s campaign criticized her.
“I found that comment to be actually offensive. I don’t know what more to say about that,” Bryan Lanza told CNN. “I’m disappointed in Sarah saying that. I’m sure I’m going to get criticism from the campaign, but I have to sort of defend somebody who’s a stepmom. It’s a tough job. People step into that role.”
Sanders was speaking at a Trump campaign rally in Flint, Mich. — the city known for its undrinkable water — when she said Harris is not humble because she does not have biological children.
“You can walk into a room like this where people cheer when you step onto the stage and you might think for a second that you’re kind of special,” Sanders told the crowd. “Then you go home and your kids remind you very quickly that you’re not that big of a deal.”
“My kids keep me humble. Unfortunately, Kamala Harris doesn’t have anything keeping her humble.”
“So, my kids keep me humble,” she said. “Unfortunately, Kamala Harris doesn’t have anything keeping her humble.”
The current vice president is stepmother to two children through her marriage to Doug Emhoff. Ella and Cole Emhoff appeared at the Democratic National Convention last month to praise their stepmother, whom they call “Momala.”
Kerstin Emhoff, ex-wife of Doug Emhoff, condemned the Arkansas governor’s assessment. “Kamala Harris has spent her entire career working for the people, ALL families,” she wrote on X. “That keeps you pretty humble.”
Democratic presidential candidate Kamala Harris (C) hugs someone as stepdaughter Ella Emhoff watches Harris’ great-niece play with balloons at the conclusion of the fourth and last day of the Democratic National Convention at the United Center in Chicago August 22. (Photo by ROBYN BECK/AFP via Getty Images)
More than 20% of all American households include stepparents living with minor children, and that number rises dramatically when adult children of previous marriages are added to the mix.
Sanders, who served as press secretary in the Trump White House, is known for making brash and outlandish statements. Her father, Mike Huckabee, also is a former Arkansas governor and entered politics after being a well-known Southern Baptist pastor in the state.
Sanders joined Republican vice presidential candidate JD Vance in holding up a strict definition of motherhood as the ideal. He previously criticized Harris and other liberals for not having biological children, calling them “childless cat ladies.”
The vice president’s husband, Doug Emhoff, responded to Sanders by saying all parents, “no matter how you become one, make the same sacrifices and revel in the same joys of raising children.”
He called Sanders’ “unbelievable” and added: “As if keeping women humble, whether you have children or not, is something we should strive for. It is not.”